Washington College Magazine
Hardesty Helps WC Go Green
Since completing his sustainability internship in January, Mike Hardesty '05 has joined the Peace Corps. He is working in forestry and natural resource management in the East African nation of Malawi.
For some, recycling is just a chore and sustainable living means making it to the next paycheck. But not for Mike Hardesty '05. The biology
Since completing his sustainability internship in January, Mike Hardesty '05 has joined the Peace Corps. He is working in forestry and natural resource management in the East African nation of Malawi. and environmental studies major lives, breathes and... well... composts this stuff.
As the College's first sustainability intern, he has given the campus new perspectives on environmentally friendly living and working.
Drawn to Washington College by its Chesapeake Bay location, Hardesty found his vocation through its environmental studies program.
"Dr. Newell's environmental ethics course exposed me to the challenges facing the world," he says. But in his senior year, a course with Dr. Wayne Bell at the Center for Environment and Society, entitled Sustainable Community Development, introduced him to a new life's pursuit. "Dr. Bell showed me that there is a paradigm shift in the environmental community toward sustainability. It is working proactively with nature to create a healthy environment and healthy civilization, to use less energy, waste less, recycle and lessen our impact on the environment."
After he graduated, Hardesty approached Professor Leslie Sherman in the chemistry department to help him design an internship to work on green issues and to implement sustainable practices on campus. With Sherman's help and funding provided by a Clare Boothe Luce assistantship, Hardesty focused on the Dining Hall.
"I call it the 'ins' and 'outs,'" he says. "One, I focused on ways to incorporate more locally grown or locally produced foods. Two, I looked to redirect the wastes in a more sustainable fashion."
Hardesty worked with Joseph Lill, Director of Dining Services, and Reid Raudenbush, Director of Buildings and Grounds, to develop a program that composts breakfast wastes, as well as scraps from salad preparation.
"By redirecting this waste stream, we are not only harnessing a great soil amendment but eliminating tons of waste. That can save the College money."
Hardesty helped to forge a relationship between Dining Services and the Kent County-based Chesapeake Fields Institute to incorporate its locally grown products"soy snacks, popcorn and Artisan-brand breads—into the College's foodservice operation.
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